Looking back: 1930's Kengtung in photos
by Naw Liang
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Once again, I am indebted to the resourcefulness of fellow Shan scholar Tinya Wollweber for uncovering this lead. Mai soong kha Tinya...

And, more importantly, I am grateful (and wish that I could say so in person) to Mi Mi Khang. An extraordinary woman, her Kanbawsa: a series of articles on the Shan State (published in the 1950's) is a wealth of cultural and political information on the Shan State. Her writing, painstakingly transposed onto the web by Sao Khai Mong, is a unique insight into the Shan State - many locales have their own articles - that has now become an historical treat. I hope to thank Sao Khai Mong sometime soon (the email does not work), and I am truly saddened to think that I cannot congratulate Mi Mi Khang.
Mai soong kha...
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Mai soong kha!

I find myself in a unique position recently: full of energy, eager to research and write and flush with information, links and leads, many from hardwork (and luck), good friends, fellow Shan scholars and others. It is a good time to be (re)searching and even better to write.

And, this entry is a perfect example of this verve, not to mention the calibre of information that is increasingly making its way onto public sources. More and more, I (and others) are finding unique sources - history, insight, art, news, culture and so on -that help to expand the exposure of the Shan. And every bit of it is appreciated.

That said, this latest finding is truly amazing and encouraging. Sao Khai Mong's online photo gallery - Kengtung in the 1930's - is one of the most interesting , most beautifully informative ShanShan sites that I have seen in some time. Although I have always had an affinity for older photographs, these are more than merely quaint snapshots. These photos are an excellent record of, a 'window' into life of 1930's Kengtung and Shan State.

Much had happened in the Shan State by the 1930s: from the arrival of the British and, soon afterwards, the French during the Mekong Exploration Commission's trek up the Mekong in 1866-68 (see John Keay's 'Mad About The Mekong'); the unfathomable influence of J. George Scott (see Andrew Marshall's 'The Trouser People') through extensive exploration, studies and writing in the 1880s; the British annexation of the Shan State in 1887; and, somewhat later, an array of explorers, travellers and authors (including W. Somerset Maugham and his 'The Gentleman in the Parlor' travelogue, which has two chapters devouted to Kengtung) who made their way through modern-day Shan State. Much had happened indeed.

Yet, despite the range and impact of these influences - particularly the rule of King Thibaw and the British colonisation that happened swiftly after - the Shan retained a strong sense of self, of identity, of their culture and of their traditions. Many of the photos available here - the processions, gatherings, audiences with the saopha and more - clearly illustrate this: a people sure of who they are and what they believe in. But, I am giving too much away (or reading too much into?) these photographs already. Just enjoy...

Thanks again to Tinya, Sao Khai Mong and Mi Mi Khang. I hope that I can get in touch with them, and that they will also continue to provide excellent materials on the Shan for us all to enjoy.

Mai soong kha,

Naw Liang